GWAs at Work

Book on Forests Forests and PeoplePublisher: Editions de la Martiniere

Designed for all audiences, the book is illustrated with 70 selected photographs of the exhibition and supplemented with texts written by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) experts, the GoodPlanet Foundation team and celebrity activists Li Bingbing, Janine Benyus, Sachin Tendulkar, Gisele Bundchen, Don Cheadle and Wangari Maathai.

The book examines the forests in their biological, cultural and economic dimension. It focuses on those who inhabit them, their benefits, the threats they face and ways to protect them.

Which environment on Earth is home to the largest number of life forms, relases incredible amounts of oxygen into the air that we breathe, plays an essential role in the water and carbon cycles, nourishes and protects the soil, has an impact on climate change, is the sole means of subsistence for hundreds of millions of people, and is the source of many of our medicines?More »

Li Bingbing

Each time I travel along the Yangtze River, I remember the summer of 1998. That year, the river was ravaged by three months of severe flooding that washed away 13 million homes and caused US$26 billion worth of damage. More »

Sachin Tendulkar

As a young boy growing up in Mumbai, I would climb trees at night to steal mangoes when everyone else was indoors watching TV. It is ironic that many years later, a newly discovered fruit tree variety was named after me – the Sachin mango tree! Looking back, I now see that certain passions in my life have come full circle.More »

Don Cheadle

The Appalachian Regional Restoration Initiative (ARRI) is a capacity-building effort between the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the US Department of the Interior’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, and the San Francisco–based Baum Foundation. More »

Gisele Bündchen

My passion for the environment is rooted in my Brazilian upbringing. I am blessed to have lived in a small village and grown up in a family that embraced the importance of nature and community coexisting in harmony. These childhood lessons are the basis for my journey into becoming an environmental advocate. However, it is the birth of my son that has made clear the kind of legacy that I would like to pass on to my children’s generation. They deserve the same chance we have had to enjoy and celebrate this beautiful planet.More »